The myth of Theseus and the Minotaur

The myth of Theseus and the Minotaur is one of the most tragic and fascinating myths of the Greek

Mythology. It features two main protagonists - Theseus, a genuine Greek hero and the Minotaur who was a

devastating and terrifying monster. The story includes gods and monsters, heroes and kings and two of the main

city–states in the Hellenic world: Athens and Crete.

The Minotaur and the Labyrinth of Crete

The Minotaur was the son of Pasiphae, wife of King Minos of Crete.

Minotaur, half man - half bull

Queen Pasiphae slept with a bull sent by the god Zeus, and gave birth to Minotaur, a creature half man – half

bull. King Minos was embarrassed, but did not want to kill the Minotaur, so he hid the monster in

the Labyrinth constructed by Daedalus at the Minoan Palace of Knossos. According to the myth, Minos was

imprisoning his enemies in the Labyrinth so that the Minotaur could eat them. The labyrinth was such a

complicated construction that no one could ever find the way out alive. King Minos’s other son, Androgeus, went

to Athens to participate to the Panathenaic Games, but he was killed during the Marathon by the same bull that

impregnated his mother, Pasiphae. Minos was infuriated, and demanded that King Aegeus of Athens send

seven men and women every year to the Minotaur to avert the plague caused by the death of Androgeus.

In the third year, Theseus, son of Aegeus decided to be one of the seven young men that would go to Crete, in

order to kill the Minotaur and end the human sacrifices to the monster. King Aegeus tried to make him change

his mind but Theseus was determined to slay the Minotaur. Theseus promised his father that he would put up

white sails coming back from Crete, allowing him to know in advance that he was coming back alive. The boat

would return with the black sails if Theseus was killed.

Theseus and the Minotaur

Theseus kills the minotaur

Theseus announced to King Minos that he was going to kill the Monster, but Minos knew that even if he did

manage to kill the Minotaur, Theseus would never be able to exit the Labyrinth.

Theseus met Princess Ariadne, daughter of King Minos, who fell madly in love with him and decided to help

Theseus. She gave him a thread and told him to unravel it as he would penetrate deeper and deeper into the

Labyrinth, so that he knows the way out when he kills the monster. Theseus followed her suggestion and

entered the labyrinth with the thread. Theseus managed to kill the Minotaur and save the Athenians, and with

Ariadne’s thread he managed to retrace his way out. Theseus took Princess Ariadne with him and left Crete

sailing happily back to Athens.

King Aegeus was waiting at Cape Sounion to see the sails of the boat. He saw the black sails from afar and

presumed his son was dead. He dropped himself to the waters, committing suicide and since then, this sea is

called the Aegean Sea.

King Minos's ShameFill in each blank with a word from the word bank that best completes the paragraph.

The idea of ______ is shown in the story about the _________. Readers are told that "King Minos

was ____________". The king was ashamed of ___________'s child and hid him away in a

______. When people are embarrassed, they are ______________ with letting other people see

and try not to draw __________ to the problem.

Word Bank:

shame, minotaur, embarrassed, Pasiphae, maze, uncomfortable, attention